A $191 million deal has been reached between the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and Starwood Capital Group for the purchase of the Riviera Hotel and Casino. The purchase is related to the $2.3 billion plan from the LVCVA for the new Global Business District, which will improve the appeal of Las Vegas as a meetings-and-conventions destination.
PokerStars, which many saw as being blocked in any potential California online poker bill because of a proposed “bad actor” clause, has been steadily picking up support from possible competitors. Last week, Caesars Entertainment communications exec Jan Jones Blackhurst (l.) announced that the company had switched gears on PokerStars. The PokerStars purchase by Amaya Gaming seems to be assuaging fears the online giant being licensed in California, though strong opposition remains.
Atlantic City’s Revel Casino can terminate a deal to sell the $2.4 billion tower to a Florida-based real estate developer for $95.4 million, a bankruptcy judge has ruled. The developer, Glenn Straub, was not able to finalize the deal by a February 9 deadline causing Revel to seek to end the deal. Straub says he will appeal the ruling.
Mexico is planning to add a number of new casinos in tourist towns including Acapulco, Baja California, Cancun and the Mayan Riviera. Hotel operators including the Hard Rock Riviera Maya (l.) and Resort Mundo Imperial Acapulco are lining up to add gaming.
The Menominee Tribe's offer of $220 million for a new Milwaukee Bucks stadium, plus tribal members' freezing 155-mile march to the Capitol, failed to convince Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker to change his mind and allow the tribe's proposed $800 million casino in Kenosha. Crystal Chapman-Chevalier (l.), vice chair of the Menominee Tribe, told Walker “it was not too late,” but it was.
The golf entertainment company Topgolf has broken ground on a flagship location on the Las Vegas Strip. The destination will open in the spring of 2016.
In the reporting for the fourth quarter, regional casinos seem to have benefited from good weather and lower gas prices. Previous cost cutting seems to have also helped. But Macau weakness is dragging down companies with exposure there
The week, the GGB Podcast is joined by Lilian Tomovich, the chief experience officer for MGM Resorts International, on her unusual position and her responsibilities for the major gaming company.
In a long-term plan to bolster mass-market play in the world’s leading gaming destination, MGM China Holdings Ltd. will spend US $100 million this year to renovate its MGM Macau resort. The project will update the casino floor and bring in new retail and restaurants.
As Vietnam prepares to name the companies that will develop a casino resort in the northern province of Quang Ninh, the site near a planned new airport is already being cleared. The resort license has reportedly attracted interest from Las Vegas Sands Corp., among other investors.
Genting Malaysia Bhd. is booming. The gaming giant, which just renovated its flagship property in Pahang, Genting Highlands (l.), and is developing a megaresort in Vegas, also will expand its casino hotel in the Bahamas and build a new resort in Jeju, South Korea.
The Philippine casino industry expects marked growth this year, due in part to an influx of Chinese players sidestepping the casinos in Macau. The head of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. says the region could see double-digit growth. Cristino Naguiat (l.), chairman of PAGCOR, says it’s not all Chinese, however.
Macau-based junket operator Iao Kun Group Holding Co. Ltd., now listed on the Nasdaq stock index in the United States, has been denied a listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. The junket industry has declined along with the casino industry in the Chinese gaming mecca.
One of Macau’s biggest junket operators, Suncity Group, will take over part of the updated VIP gaming area at Wynn Macau, according to reports from the Chinese gaming hub. Wynn honcho Gamal Aziz (l.) says the resort has “eliminated the weaker junket operators.”
Some industry analysts and lawmakers, as well as the Mainland Chinese government, say Macau doesn’t have enough mainstream attractions beyond gaming. Sands China could change that with its new virtual-reality theme park on the Cotai Strip.
Macau’s Judiciary Police raided 19 apartments and seized equipment used to send gaming-related communications. Nine suspects from Mainland China and Taiwan have been detained following the action on February 15.
Big European bookmakers are laying odds that Greece will keep using the euro, at least for the rest of 2015. Ladbrokes of London bet 8 to 11 that Greece will stay in the currency regime this year. William Hill put those odds at 1 to 4.
Swedish gaming operator Svenska Spel, a state-owned entity, will maintain its lock on legal gaming in the country for now. The company, which saw a marked drop in revenue last year, has applied to offer legal online gaming in an attempt to boost the numbers.
Raha-automaattiyhdistys, Finland’s slot machine association, reported a 1.9 percent decline in gaming revenues for 2014. RAY says an overall sluggish economy and poor market conditions were behind the drop.
The government of Mongolia is planning two casino resorts to draw players from Russia, China and Japan. Following the example of Vietnam, South Korea and Cambodia, the country’s legislation would exclude local players from gambling.
One Hundred Sands, the sole casino license holder in Fiji, has had its license revoked. In 2011 the firm, which had planned a $290 million integrated casino resort on the island, was granted a 15-year monopoly by the nation’s government.
A Canadian judge has ordered Ontario’s provincial government, Premier Kathleen Wynne (l.), and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp. to produce documents related to the cancellation of a revenue-sharing deal with standard-bred horse breeders. The program was suspended in March 2012.
Although three gaming tribes who once insisted on a “bad actor” clause before they would support a bill allowing online poker in California have said they are willing to compromise, others are hardening their stance. Although the issue remains in play, even the author of the bill thinks its chances are 50-50 at best. Morongo Band leader Robert Martin (l.) pleads for a compromise.
Resorts Atlantic City will launch an online gambling site in New Jersey offering slots and casino games in partnership with Sportech and NYX Gaming. The casino is also partnered with PokerStars which has yet to be licensed with the state and has not launched a site. Atlantic City casinos can partner with multiple online gambling partners.
Atlantic City’s remaining casinos saw a 19 percent increase in revenue in January over a year ago, buoyed by growth in online gambling revenue. Total revenue still increased by 1 percent for the city’s casinos even when factoring in revenue from four resort casinos that closed in 2014. Seven of the eight remaining city casinos saw revenue increases.
888 Holdings announced that it had ended negotiations with British Bookmaker William Hill about a possible acquisition. The two sides could not reach an agreement because of a “significant difference of opinion on value” by a major investor.
Totowinbet is launching an affiliate program with technology and digital marketing service provider Income Access to be managed using the latter’s software.
Playing fantasy sports is illegal in Kansas, and although no prosecutor has ever pursued a case against it, Kansas state Rep. Brett Hilderbrand introduced a bill making fantasy sports legal. "Thousands of Kansans" play and "I would say the vast majority have no idea they’re even breaking the law," Hildabrand said.
Blackstone Group LP has plans of investing $200 million into their newest acquisition, the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. The top four floors of a hotel tower, which are currently unfinished, will be converted into grand suites in hopes of luring in high rollers.
A federal appeals court in a decision authored by former Supreme Court Justice David Souter (l.) has ruled that Caesars Entertainment has not standing to challenge the legality of the action by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission that awarded the Boston Metro license to rival Wynn Resorts.
For the 16th time Senator Lou D’Allesandro (l.) has introduced a bill in the New Hampshire Senate to authorize two casinos in the Granite State. Every other time the bill has either failed to pass or died in the House. The senator is optimistic that this time will be different.
The Indiana House Public Policy Committee passed state Rep. Tom Dermody's (l.) House Bill 1540, which would allow riverboat casinos to move ashore, extend tax provisions, permit live table games at racinos and provide investment tax credits. The bill will move to the House Ways and Means Committee.
Kentucky lawmakers, in anticipation of another failed effort to legalize casino gaming, are moving to regulate and tax the instant racing machines already in operation.
Wagering on the Olympics in Nevada has taken one step closer to becoming a reality with the Nevada Gaming Control Board recommending the state's gaming commission legalizing the wagers. The commission will meet on February 26 to discuss the issue.
Caesars Entertainment Corporation has denied a request from a representative of second-lien bondholders for a payment of $3.68 billion plus interest. The company filed for bankruptcy in January.
While people in the three areas set to receive mega resort-casinos in New York have differing opinions on the economic impact, the optimists see them as a boon to tourism, and an opportunity to show what their community offers. The Lago Resort & Casino (l.) hopes to boost Finger Lakes region.
National Basketball Players Association Executive Director Michele Roberts (l.) says the organization has begun discussions with players on the possibility of an expansion of legalized sports betting in the country. Roberts says the association has not formulated a new policy on sports betting, but the discussions come after NBA Commissioner Adam Silver called for regulated sports betting in the U.S.
Reno continues with their trend of renovating and remodeling. The latest properties are the purchase and remodeling of the Knights Inn, which has stood empty for 30 years, and renovations to the Nugget Casino Resort (l.), which changed hands in ownership for the first time in over 50 years.
In a recent poll of 2,500 Alabamians, 60 percent said they would vote for casino-style gambling. Also, 69 percent want Governor Robert Bentley to consider a gambling compact with Indian tribes that operate casinos in the state. But Bentley said he'd rather raise taxes to close the state's $700 million budget deficit.
After a rather pedestrian 2014 for casinos, 2015 is starting strong, and actually picking up where 2014 left off. Many are citing the recent decline in gas prices as a major factor in people spending extra money in their favorite casinos.
Atlantic City’s City Council has approved plans for a giant observation wheel and new zip line on the famous Steel Pier (l.), as well as a development plan for the city’s Inlet section. The moves are part of the city’s efforts to diversify its attractions away from casino gambling. The city also got good news about its entertainment attractions.
After internet poker and casino games have fallen short of expectations, there has been a spike in internet lottery ticket sales. Last year saw Georgia, Michigan, and Minnesota legalize online lottery sales, and some feel Kentucky may join the ranks soon.
Atlantic City’ struggling Trump Taj Mahal casino will close its money-losing poker room for renovation. The Taj hopes to re-open the room by the summer and return it to the top of the city’s live poker market.
Bars in Vermont have begun to offer lottery sales and Touch Play gambling machines (l.), which resemble arcade games. The installing of machines has been met with controversy, as this marks the first time since 1998 lottery revenue will go towards something other than education for the state.
The numbers from the fourth quarter are in for Las Vegas, and local casinos are taking the spotlight. Station Casinos and Boyd Gaming both saw gains in all areas, most notable rooms and food & beverage.
Although two Annie's café casinos have requested opening in Peoria, Illinois, the city council is stuck between restricting or approving them. The council has no official policy about the café casinos and has no plans to discuss the matter, said City Manager Patrick Urich.
Sales have been declining for the Arkansas state lottery and a consultant recently said it needs to improve its image. As a result, a legislative committee recently approved moving lottery management from a nine-member commission to a governor-appointed director at the Department of Finance and Administration.
Legislation has not yet been filed but Florida state Reps. Matt Gaetz and Jared Moskowitz want greyhound racetracks (Derby Lane near Tampa at left) to decouple the number of races required from offering poker rooms or other gambling. But industry officials claim the tracks just want to become casinos, resulting in massive layoffs and the end of racing.
Efforts to extend unemployment benefits for laid-off casino workers in Atlantic City aren’t likely to succeed as the national economy improves, lessening the need for a federal extension.
Minnesota legislators are trying again to ban state lottery sales online, at gas pumps and ATMs. Bills to that end are moving through the House and Senate. Legislators said the lottery began the new sales methods without their permission. Governor Mark Dayton vetoed a similar bill last year.
Owners of Idaho racetracks that operate “instant racing” were stunned last week when the state Senate voted to ban the machines that have been operating for a year now. The complaint from state tribes? The look and feel too much like slot machines, as Senator Bob Nonini (l.) contends.
Newly negotiated tribal state gaming compacts will give Washington’s gaming tribes 2,700 slot machines immediately, and let market conditions determine how many they have in future years. Governor Jay Inslee is expected to sign the compacts.
Florida legislators are not counting on the $200 million provided by the Seminole Tribe under its gaming compact, which will expire in July. Tribal officials said they could offer card games at their Hard Rock (l. in Hollywood) and other tribal casinos without the compact, while legislators said they're considering allowing parimutuels to offer the games and permitting Las Vegas-style resort casinos.
The proposed gaming compact negotiated between New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez's administration and several tribes will have its first legislative committee hearing this week. Jicarilla Apache President Ty Vicenti urged the legislature, which adjourns March 21, to act fast on its compact to the tribe’s Apache Nugget casino (l.) can stay open.
If casino gaming is good for a tribe’s bottom line, why not growing medical marijuana? Following an advisory by the U.S. Justice Department, some tribes are looking into becoming your friendly neighborhood pot dealer.
The under-construction $110 million Cherokee Valley River Casino (l.), owned by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, is on schedule to open in late summer in Murphy, North Carolina. Road and infrastructure development surrounding the casino and hotel are moving forward and the property will begin hiring 900 employees in April.
Card rooms in the Golden State stoutly maintain that they are just as heavily regulated as Indian casinos, and moreover that their regulations are enforced in the light of day. That’s the reaction of some card rooms to recent criticisms by tribes that they are not subject to enough oversight.
The National Indian Gaming Commission said the Quapaw Tribe can extend gaming at its Oklahoma Downstream casino (l.) onto a parking lot—in Kansas. Strongly opposed are the Kansas attorney general and the Cherokee County commission, which previously endorsed two of the four bids for a Southeast Kansas Gaming Zone casino in their county.
One of the largest casino resorts in Southern California, Pala Casino Spa & Resort, has begun a $5 million renovation and addition that will open this May.
Island Resort & Casino in Harris Township, Michigan announced a two-year expansion and renovation project. Owned and operated by the Hannahville Indian Community, a band of the Potawatomi Nation, the project will include bingo hall and hotel entrance renovations plus a second golf course and new full-service spa
A New Jersey Superior Court has ruled that players who played in a mini-baccarat game with an unshuffled deck must return all chips and winnings to Golden Nugget Atlantic City.
Celebrity chef Gorton Ramsay has opened the Gordon Ramsay Pub & Grill at Caesars Atlantic City, seeking to duplicate his success at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.
